Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Shares Sold by Forsta AP Fonden

Forsta AP Fonden lessened its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 10.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 40,000 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 4,800 shares during the period. Forsta AP Fonden’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $8,588,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NSC. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter valued at about $556,797,000. Boston Partners raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 157.1% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,890,665 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $735,749,000 after buying an additional 1,766,135 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 5.9% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,623,690 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $5,001,490,000 after acquiring an additional 1,088,072 shares during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 600.3% in the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,021,312 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $241,421,000 after acquiring an additional 875,473 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 17.3% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,356,590 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $720,626,000 after acquiring an additional 496,088 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In other news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction on Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total transaction of $88,529.90. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $371,077.44. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total transaction of $88,529.90. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $371,077.44. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were acquired at an average price of $245.15 per share, with a total value of $171,605.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 7,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,887,655. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 3.5 %

Shares of NYSE NSC opened at $245.80 on Friday. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12-month low of $183.09 and a 12-month high of $263.66. The stock has a market cap of $55.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.58, a PEG ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $240.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $238.22.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.20. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.64% and a net margin of 14.85%. The company had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.95 EPS. Norfolk Southern’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 2nd were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.20%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 86.96%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Susquehanna lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $251.00 to $253.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $239.00 to $241.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $175.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $288.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $264.24.

About Norfolk Southern

Norfolk Southern Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the rail transportation of raw materials, intermediate products, and finished goods in the United States. The company transports agriculture, forest, and consumer products comprising soybeans, wheat, corn, fertilizers, livestock and poultry feed, food products, food oils, flour, sweeteners, ethanol, lumber and wood products, pulp board and paper products, wood fibers, wood pulp, beverages, and canned goods; chemicals consist of sulfur and related chemicals, petroleum products comprising crude oil, chlorine and bleaching compounds, plastics, rubber, industrial chemicals, chemical wastes, sand, and natural gas liquids; metals and construction materials, such as steel, aluminum products, machinery, scrap metals, cement, aggregates, minerals, clay, transportation equipment, and military-related products; and automotive, including finished motor vehicles and automotive parts, as well as coal.